Early the other morning, the sun was shining BRIGHT through the front windows while we were playing. I loved watching his little face and all of his expressions as we were counting, naming animals and making towers.
Monday, July 21, 2014
Thursday, July 17, 2014
Meal Planning: Week of July 21st
Review from last week:
Friday was a hot and draining day. I was so happy to have dinner all prepped and ready to go. The black bean & corn salad was delicious. I had basically filled up on it while the steak was grilling - I just couldn't stop sneaking bites in!
Forgot to take pictures of our BBQ with the Olsons - aside from this adorable one of the kids:
We tried a new recipe from Bon Appetit - Moroccan Chicken Brochettes with garlic yogurt sauce - and it was really great and simple.
I made a "pasta" dish with Italian sausage, "golden" garlic (i.e. toasted in a pan), tomatoes, red pepper flakes, basil and Parmesean that I thought was pretty good (although I don't think Greg or Ben cared much for it).
On Wednesday it was so freaking hot that we opted to go out for pizza at Elliott Bay Pizza - great pizza (and beer).
Tonight, I had both cod and asparagus that I needed to use up, so we had lemon pepper cod and roasted asparagus with a poached egg on top.
Plan for next week:
Friday: Our neighbors are coming over for dinner, so we thought we would make Chicken Paillard. Easy to make ahead the night before and throw on the grill!
Saturday: Greg and I are going out to dinner while Ben hangs with Grandma :)
Sunday: BBQ with Maureen & Vitaliy + the kids. I think I'll make another batch of the Black Bean & Corn Salad and have Greg throw some tandoori chicken on the grill.
Monday: Toasted Quinoa Salad with Scallops and Snow Peas
Tuesday: Dinner at Robin, Garrett and Graycen's house! It's been awhile since we have seen them and we are so excited to see their new home!
Wednesday: Chicken Wedge Salad with Apple, Walnuts, and Lemon-Blue Cheese Dressing
Thursday: With plans to go away for the weekend, I thought a night of "use what you have" for dinner was in order.
Friday was a hot and draining day. I was so happy to have dinner all prepped and ready to go. The black bean & corn salad was delicious. I had basically filled up on it while the steak was grilling - I just couldn't stop sneaking bites in!
Forgot to take pictures of our BBQ with the Olsons - aside from this adorable one of the kids:
We tried a new recipe from Bon Appetit - Moroccan Chicken Brochettes with garlic yogurt sauce - and it was really great and simple.
I made a "pasta" dish with Italian sausage, "golden" garlic (i.e. toasted in a pan), tomatoes, red pepper flakes, basil and Parmesean that I thought was pretty good (although I don't think Greg or Ben cared much for it).
On Wednesday it was so freaking hot that we opted to go out for pizza at Elliott Bay Pizza - great pizza (and beer).
Tonight, I had both cod and asparagus that I needed to use up, so we had lemon pepper cod and roasted asparagus with a poached egg on top.
Plan for next week:
Friday: Our neighbors are coming over for dinner, so we thought we would make Chicken Paillard. Easy to make ahead the night before and throw on the grill!
Saturday: Greg and I are going out to dinner while Ben hangs with Grandma :)
Sunday: BBQ with Maureen & Vitaliy + the kids. I think I'll make another batch of the Black Bean & Corn Salad and have Greg throw some tandoori chicken on the grill.
Monday: Toasted Quinoa Salad with Scallops and Snow Peas
Tuesday: Dinner at Robin, Garrett and Graycen's house! It's been awhile since we have seen them and we are so excited to see their new home!
Wednesday: Chicken Wedge Salad with Apple, Walnuts, and Lemon-Blue Cheese Dressing
Thursday: With plans to go away for the weekend, I thought a night of "use what you have" for dinner was in order.
Thursday, July 10, 2014
Meal Planning: Week of July 14th
Review from last week:
Greg made some of my favorite chicken (marinated in tandoori and teriyaki sauce and grilled) to go with the last of our Blue Apron meals from the week prior - crispy sweet corn fritters, which were just okay.
The Blue Apron meals from this week were 3 for 3 in the amazing department. The Chicken and sauteed bulger with tomato salad and creamy lemon-yogurt was REALLY good. I've finally found a way to cook chicken that Ben likes (lightly seasoned and seared in a pan. The olive oil gives it just enough of a crispy crust that he mistakes it for a "nugget". And the bulger (which is a new thing I'm totally into) was so delicious with the yogurt sauce (non-fat greek yogurt, lemon zest, olive oil, salt and pepper).
The cod and squash (cooked in a "packet" of parchment paper and baked with the cooked quinoa and raw squash) was so flavorful and easy to make. Another thing I like about Blue Apron - I'm learning new cooking styles!
Finally, the Filipino-Style Beef Picadillo over rice was super tasty and not something I would EVER think to make on my own, nor was it something that sounded particularly good on a HOT summer evening - but it did taste great. I would make something like this again - but in the fall, to have with aglass bottle of red.
Plan for next week:
Friday: Mexican, which always sounds good on a warm weekend evening. I found this recipe for black bean & corn salad with chipolte-honey vinaigrette that sounds fantastic, so I think I'll give it a try. I made a batch of it tonight to chill over night in the fridge and marinated flank with this balsalmic marinade we never did last week. There will be nothing to do tomorrow except grill it and whip up a batch of margaritas and a cheese quesadilla for Ben :)
Saturday: Callie, Phil, Mira and Maylee are coming over for dinner! I'm so excited - it seems so rare these days that we get together aside from when I'm dropping Ben off :( It will be so fun to enjoy a little QT with the 4 of them! I'm planning (for Greg) to make Pineapple Pork Kabobs.
Sunday: Leftovers or out to dinner (i.e. take out).
Monday: Moroccan Chicken Brochettes
Tuesday: Vietnamese Summer Rolls with Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce. Will definitely be adding shrimp to these, and possibly omitting the noodles (depending whether I can locate them at the grocery store or not)! This is another recipe I might use as inspiration.
Wednesday: Pasta with golden garlic and heirloom tomatoes. Will use up whatever pasta I have OR if I can get my hands on a spaghetti squash, I'll use that. Might also add Italian sausage - TBD. I'll make some broccoli with mizithra to go with it.
Thursday: Seared salmon with lemon quinoa salad - using arugula instead of pea tendrils.
Greg made some of my favorite chicken (marinated in tandoori and teriyaki sauce and grilled) to go with the last of our Blue Apron meals from the week prior - crispy sweet corn fritters, which were just okay.
The Blue Apron meals from this week were 3 for 3 in the amazing department. The Chicken and sauteed bulger with tomato salad and creamy lemon-yogurt was REALLY good. I've finally found a way to cook chicken that Ben likes (lightly seasoned and seared in a pan. The olive oil gives it just enough of a crispy crust that he mistakes it for a "nugget". And the bulger (which is a new thing I'm totally into) was so delicious with the yogurt sauce (non-fat greek yogurt, lemon zest, olive oil, salt and pepper).
The cod and squash (cooked in a "packet" of parchment paper and baked with the cooked quinoa and raw squash) was so flavorful and easy to make. Another thing I like about Blue Apron - I'm learning new cooking styles!
Finally, the Filipino-Style Beef Picadillo over rice was super tasty and not something I would EVER think to make on my own, nor was it something that sounded particularly good on a HOT summer evening - but it did taste great. I would make something like this again - but in the fall, to have with a
Plan for next week:
Friday: Mexican, which always sounds good on a warm weekend evening. I found this recipe for black bean & corn salad with chipolte-honey vinaigrette that sounds fantastic, so I think I'll give it a try. I made a batch of it tonight to chill over night in the fridge and marinated flank with this balsalmic marinade we never did last week. There will be nothing to do tomorrow except grill it and whip up a batch of margaritas and a cheese quesadilla for Ben :)
Saturday: Callie, Phil, Mira and Maylee are coming over for dinner! I'm so excited - it seems so rare these days that we get together aside from when I'm dropping Ben off :( It will be so fun to enjoy a little QT with the 4 of them! I'm planning (for Greg) to make Pineapple Pork Kabobs.
Sunday: Leftovers or out to dinner (i.e. take out).
Monday: Moroccan Chicken Brochettes
Tuesday: Vietnamese Summer Rolls with Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce. Will definitely be adding shrimp to these, and possibly omitting the noodles (depending whether I can locate them at the grocery store or not)! This is another recipe I might use as inspiration.
Wednesday: Pasta with golden garlic and heirloom tomatoes. Will use up whatever pasta I have OR if I can get my hands on a spaghetti squash, I'll use that. Might also add Italian sausage - TBD. I'll make some broccoli with mizithra to go with it.
Thursday: Seared salmon with lemon quinoa salad - using arugula instead of pea tendrils.
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
Photos from the week
Pool party at Rachel's before a BBQ she hosted for us!
Glamour-selfie.
A morning of yard work. Side note - we have the BEST neighbors. The couple on one side of us is having their gardeners (oh how I LONG to have gardeners one day) trim our enormous laurels. We offered to pay, but he insisted that it will not cost him anything extra - apparently they are on a retainer. NICE. The couple on the other side of us just asked how I would feel if they ripped out some of the more unattractive bushes we share along the driveway and replace them with some larger ground covering bushes. I told them, YES - PLEASE, and by the time I returned home from the park with Ben that day all of the old bushes were gone.
Sometimes we feel like the deadbeat neighbors in the middle who are too busy to spend HOURS maintaining our yard, but we do the best we can and everyone reassures us they understand. Feeling pretty thankful for them!
Break from yard work.
Napping with daddy was more appealing than his bed today.
A typical evening at our house.
Greg and I went to see John Legend at Chateau Ste Michelle and it was SO MUCH FUN! I officially want to see a concert here every summer - what a perfect venue!
He didn't want to get out of the bath :(
Took a trip to Edmonds Beach.
A tantrum.
Monday, July 7, 2014
4th of July
We had a nice, fun, family-friendly 4th this year! We started the morning by Greg waking up at 6 am - full of energy - while Ben and I slept until almost 8. Unheard of. After some coffee, Greg decided to go run 6 miles while I felt like the laziest person alive. What a beast!
After dressing in our most patriotic outfits, we drove down into Downtown Bothell and grabbed breakfast at the Alexa Cafe. We then walked to the park, checked out a tractor and killed time before the parade started at noon.
Kisses for dada.
The beginning of the parade started with 6 fire trucks slowly making their way down the road. Lights and sirens - the works. Ben loved every single second of it, and once they had passed, requested "more fire trucks please".
"Hi, fire trucks"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
After Ben's nap, we drove up to Lake Stickney (Everett) to join the Christensens at a BBQ! Ben loved running around with Laryd and the other big kids. Laryd was SO patient with him, too - allowing him to interrupt their game of baseball whenever he wanted and fetching the soccer ball every time Ben kicked it into the bushes.
After the weather took a turn (didn't see that coming!!) we drove home to warm up with a hot bath and jammies. We are luckily able to see some of the big shows from our couch/deck, so we tried to stay up and watch for awhile - but every time I took Ben outside, he would bury his face in my neck and refuse to look. Maybe next year ;)
Thursday, July 3, 2014
Meal Planning: Week of July 7th
Review from last week:
The chicken dish we made in the crockpot was really good and very simple. I forgot to take a picture, but here it is as leftovers for lunch (over cabbage):
For dinner on Monday night, it was hot and we were tired. So margaritas and guacamole with various dippers (veggies, chips and cheese) on the deck.
Greg felt like grilling on Tuesday. We luckily had flank in the freezer and nearly all the ingredients to make this steak and corn, tomato and asparagus recipe already in my fridge that we needed to use up. Love when a meal comes together that way! It was possibly one of the best flank marinades ever.
The buttermilk chicken sliders were great - prepared by Greg! I came home from yoga so hungry on Wednesday night that I dived right in before taking a picture :)
The steak tacos (Blue Apron) were also delicious. Forgot to snap a plate pic, but trust me, it was pretty.
Plan for next week:
Friday: 4th of July! We are spending the afternoon/evening with the Christensens at a BBQ before they depart to Alaska for a month. I'm certain there will be plenty of delicious BBQ'd food and beer consumed. I'll be making this antipasto pasta salad to bring and share.
Saturday: Balsamic Marinated Flank Steak.
Sunday: BBQ at Rachel's!
Monday: Burgers and salad (or whatever vegetable I need to use up from the fridge).
Tuesday: Blue Apron Meal: Cod and Pattypan Squash En Pappillote with Garlic Butter & Fresh Herb Salad
Wednesday: Blue Apron Meal: Pan-Seared Chicken & Sauteed Bulgur with Tomato Salad & Creamy Lemon-Yogurt Sauce
Thursday: Blue Apron Meal: Filipino-Style Beef Picadillo with Chayote Squash & Jasmine Rice
The chicken dish we made in the crockpot was really good and very simple. I forgot to take a picture, but here it is as leftovers for lunch (over cabbage):
For dinner on Monday night, it was hot and we were tired. So margaritas and guacamole with various dippers (veggies, chips and cheese) on the deck.
Greg felt like grilling on Tuesday. We luckily had flank in the freezer and nearly all the ingredients to make this steak and corn, tomato and asparagus recipe already in my fridge that we needed to use up. Love when a meal comes together that way! It was possibly one of the best flank marinades ever.
The buttermilk chicken sliders were great - prepared by Greg! I came home from yoga so hungry on Wednesday night that I dived right in before taking a picture :)
The steak tacos (Blue Apron) were also delicious. Forgot to snap a plate pic, but trust me, it was pretty.
Plan for next week:
Friday: 4th of July! We are spending the afternoon/evening with the Christensens at a BBQ before they depart to Alaska for a month. I'm certain there will be plenty of delicious BBQ'd food and beer consumed. I'll be making this antipasto pasta salad to bring and share.
Saturday: Balsamic Marinated Flank Steak.
Sunday: BBQ at Rachel's!
Monday: Burgers and salad (or whatever vegetable I need to use up from the fridge).
Tuesday: Blue Apron Meal: Cod and Pattypan Squash En Pappillote with Garlic Butter & Fresh Herb Salad
Wednesday: Blue Apron Meal: Pan-Seared Chicken & Sauteed Bulgur with Tomato Salad & Creamy Lemon-Yogurt Sauce
Thursday: Blue Apron Meal: Filipino-Style Beef Picadillo with Chayote Squash & Jasmine Rice
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